Pancreatitis is inflammation of the pancreas that can be acute — a painful episode often triggered by gallstones or alcohol — or chronic, where the gland is progressively destroyed over years, causing pain, malnutrition, and diabetes. Severe acute pancreatitis carries significant mortality, and chronic pancreatitis remains one of the most painful abdominal conditions.
What's actually going on in research
Several drugs targeting the inflammatory cascade in acute pancreatitis — including IL-1 and neutrophil extracellular trap inhibitors — are in trials to prevent progression to severe necrosis. For chronic pancreatitis, endoscopic and surgical drainage procedures are being compared in trials, and pain management strategies using endoscopic, surgical, and neuromodulation approaches are actively studied. The relationship between chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer risk is driving surveillance schedule development.
Anti-inflammatory drugs
Trials are testing IL-1 pathway inhibitors and complement blockers to interrupt the inflammatory cascade that causes organ failure in severe acute pancreatitis.
Endoscopic vs. surgical drainage
For painful chronic pancreatitis with ductal obstruction, trials are comparing endoscopic stenting versus surgical procedures for long-term pain relief.
Pancreatic enzyme replacement
Optimizing enzyme replacement therapy — timing, dose, and formulation — is being studied to improve nutrition and reduce fat malabsorption in people with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency.
What to know before you search
Eligibility depends on pancreatitis type (acute vs. chronic), severity, etiology (alcohol, gallstones, genetic), ductal anatomy, and pain characteristics.
What types of trials are currently open
- Acute pancreatitis trials — Testing anti-inflammatory drugs, nutrition strategies, and interventions to prevent organ failure.
- Chronic pancreatitis pain trials — Comparing endoscopic, surgical, and neuromodulation approaches for intractable pancreatic pain.
- Prevention trials — Testing strategies to prevent gallstone pancreatitis recurrence and alcohol-related pancreatitis.
- Nutrition trials — Evaluating enzyme replacement, nutritional support, and diet modifications in exocrine insufficiency.
- Cancer surveillance trials — Testing CT and endoscopic ultrasound surveillance protocols for chronic pancreatitis patients at elevated cancer risk.
Recently added Pancreatitis trials
A COMBINATION OF RECTAL INDOMETHACIN AND COLD WATER EXPOSURE OF THE AMPULLA AFTER ERCP IS SUPERIOR TO RECTAL INDOMETHACIN ALONE IN REDUCING THE INCIDENCE OF POST-ERCP PANCREATITIS -RCT
Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) has emerged as the primary modality in the management of biliary and pancreatic disease. The complications occurring from ERCP can range from mild to fatal. Procedure related complications are Pancreatitis , Bleeding , Infections- Cholangitis, Cholecystitis , Perforations of which Post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP) is the most common serious adverse event. Reported incidence of PEP is 8.6-10.7% according to studies(overall RCTs).In India it is 6.6% (2020 study). Prevention as well as early detection and management of PEP results in a satisfactory outcome. Multiple RCTs and meta-analyses show rectal indomethacin/diclofenac significantly reduce PEP in average- and high-risk patients; now recommended by ASGE/ESGE for nearly all ERCPs. Other measures for prevention of PEP are prophylactic pancreatic duct stents in high-risk anatomy/instrumentation; wire-guided cannulation; minimizing PD contrast; periprocedural aggressive lactated Ringer's hydration. Cryoprevention effect was shown to reduce postprocedure papillary edema and thus lower the risk of PEP 1. Rectal NSAIDs reduce but do not eliminate PEP. 2. Cold-water ampullary cooling is biologically plausible but under-studied. 3. First study to demonstrate if combination of rectal indomethacin and cold-water irrigation may have a synergistic effect. 4. First study in Indian population.
Validation of the Odesa Criteria 2026 for Autoimmune Pancreatitis
This ambispective observational study aims to validate the Odesa Criteria 2026 (OC26), a flexible domain-based point scoring system for diagnosing autoimmune pancreatitis. The study evaluates diagnostic accuracy and reproducibility of OC26 across clinical, serological, morphological, and histological domains.
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